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iPad apps - writing skills 

Book makers
Story makers (written text)
Cartoon/comic makers
Photo + Text
Other writing apps

 Book makers

Book Creator allows anyone to create their own books using images, text, videos, and audio recordings.You can choose from portrait, landscape or square book format. Add pictures from the Photos app, or grab them from the web, move and resize them with your fingers. Edit text using the onscreen keyboard, and apply fonts and formatting. Use the record button to narrate the text or import speech and music. Layout your book exactly as you want it with guidelines and snap positioning and use a custom color scheme. Send your books to your friends over email, to iTunes on your computer, over Dropbox, or to a WebDav server. Print using AirPrint or other printer apps, or export as PDF. Get help from the in-app tutorial or online.
Download this example on your iPad (click on Open in iBooks). I made it to demonstrate some apps.
$5.49
All levels
5
Easy

Creative Book Builder (CBB) enables students to create, edit and publish professional looking ebooks. They can add tables, multiple-choice questions, Quizlet quizzes, video, audio recordings and Educreations tutorials. They can generate and embed QR codes, embed PDF files, import from Dropbox, Google Drive and add URLs. CBB enables users to create an unlimited number of chapters and sections, customize their book information and edit content offline. Books created in CBB can be shared via e-mail, Dropbox, Google Drive, WebDav Server, QR codes or iTunes File Sharing. All published ebooks can be read by any ePub reader including iBooks. Once published in iBook Shelf, readers can highlight words, add notes and define words by using the integrated dictionary function. Students might also like to use CBB to create e-portfolios that contains PDFs of the work they have done throughout the year.
$4.49
Secondary
5
Medium

The bookPress app has been developed by Bookemon and you need to register with them before you can begin. Start with one of Bookemon’s pre-designed templates, with built in illustrated backgrounds, according to the type of book you wish to develop, or use a blank template in one of two sizes. Personalise your stories with your own photos or use clipart from the B Bookemon Library (in app). Save your finished books to Bookeman’s bCloud and share them with family and friends via email, Facebook or Twitter. Privacy settings give you control over access to your books.
Free
Secondary
4
Easy

Story makers (written text)

Use StoryKit to write some text, illustrate it by drawing on the screen, taking or inserting photos from the library (you can transfer photos to the library from an iCloud service such as Dropbox). You could also create your own illustrations on paper and photograph the image. You can record a narration and the layout elements of your story can be dragged, pinched and altered with ease. You can add a single voice recording to a page or do separate recordings for each sentence. You can also add the text in sections. Click here to see what a finished story looks like online . You could put a captured image of the front page of each story into an online environment such as a wiki and then link the URL to the image. For that reason, I wouldn't put a sound file on the front page. NEEDS UPDATING TO iOS 11
Free
Primary, junior secondary
4
Easy

Scribble Press is a book creation app that enables kids to create and share their own stories using a range of drawing and writing tools, including over 50 story templates. Check out this guide for teachers. NEEDS UPDATING
Free
Primary - junior secondary

Scribble My Story is the junior version of the Scribble Press app. Students can create their own book from scratch, draw images, record audio and share the finished product with parents. NEEDS UPDATING TO iOS 11
Free
Junior primary


Bookabi enables students to create their very own storybooks in 2D and 3D. They can choose from bookabi's backgrounds, characters, objects and stickers or use their own photos and become part of the story. Bookabi features 2D and 3D characters that they can pose, rotate and move
, easy-to-add text, speech bubbles, pre-loaded backgrounds, objects and stickers. Students can record audio on each page

or listen to the audio in books that the teacher or other students have created. NEEDS UPDATING TO iOS 11
Free
Primary

StoryPatch is a picture book story creator. It has hundreds of images in its library as well as the ability to import photos. Children can start a story from scratch or build a story with the help of one of the included themes.
$2.99
Primary

STORY MAKER

Cartoon/comic makers


Strip designer supplies users with more than 100 templates containing 1 to 9 photo cells. You can also
 create your own layouts with up to 12 photo cells. There are
12 customisable balloon types. There are also more than 150 stickers to insert for additional impact. Comics can be published on Facebook, Flickr and Twitter
 or exported via Dropbox or to PDF to create real comic book pages. Photos can be imported from Facebook and you can also import maps.

$2.99
All levels
5
Easy

Comic Life for iPad is a fun, simple way to make comic eBooks. Get started with full page templates and panel layouts. Take pictures directly with the iPad or import photos from the Internet, Photobooth or your personal library and use the editing and design tools to get the finished look you want.
Click here for a comparison of Comic Life and Strip Designer (above).
$5.49
All levels
5+
Easy

PhotoComic is quick and simple to use. It gives you a choice of layouts, speech/thought balloons and some graphic elements but you are not able to modify the fonts. One good feature is the ability to lock images and text in place so that you don't move them accidentally. You can send your finished cartoon via email or share through Facebook and Twitter.
$0.99
All levels
3
Easy

ComicBook! is a full featured comic book creation app. Pictures can be loaded from the library or captured directly through the device. Users can then apply a wide selection of image filters (I love the "Comic" filter), sizeable comic fonts (with international characters available), border styles, a library of 58 comic graphics which can be scaled/rotated and 30 page layouts in both portrait and landscape modes. Finished comics can be published directly to Facebook or shared on Twitter with Twitpics. They can also be emailed as JPG or PDF files and saved to the photo library.
$0.99
Primary & Junior Secondary
5
Easy

FriendStripPro
Comics Head
Halftone 2

Photo + text: posters / collages

PicCollage enables users to create collages using their photo library, stickers, text, web images and freeform cut-outs. There is an in-built video tutorial. You can share finished collages via email, Instagram, Facebook & Twitter.
Free.
$2.49 for additional content
Primary & Junior Secondary
4
Easy


Moldiv lets you make a collage of up to 9 photos in one of a range of frames. You can select multiple photos at once. You then have lots of editing options such as adding text captions, speech bubbles and numerous stamps and can apply one of 36 photo effects to individual photos. 
Free
Secondary
3
Easy

Phonto allows users to add text to their photos. More than 200 fonts are available. The text size, colour, gradient etc. is completely changeable. Select a photo or take one with the camera, then click anywhere on the image to add text. You can add shadow to the text, adjust the line spacing and add items such as balloons, rectangles, stars and hearts.
Free ($0.99 for an ad-free version
Secondary
3/4
Medium

With Skitch you use shapes, arrows, sketches, stamps and text annotation to get your point across fast.
Use it to: Mark up photos, screenshots, maps, and webpages then share them inside or outside the classroom; have races to write vocabulary and hold it up for all to see!
Free
All
3/4
Easy

Over combines good photography with great typography. Use it to add create inspirational photos by adding captions, quotes, jokes, poems etc. The app comes with 200+ fonts or you can install your own fonts if you like. The simplicity of the right side wheel navigation makes Over very user friendly. It supports all of the major social networks, so connecting and sharing is simple.
$1.99
Secondary
3
Easy


ScrapPad includes a range of professionally designed backgrounds, borders and embellishments with separate (mostly free) themes available through the App store.
 You can use photos from your iPad photo library, camera or iCloud and add text using the custom text editor.
 Share your finished albums on Facebook or by email.
$5.49
Secondary
4
Easy

Start Scrap It HD by tapping the scissors icon. Choose from dozens of different papers for your background. Next choose photos from your photo library, and if you like apply some of the 35+ photo effects, as well as a colored border. It is quite intuitive to move the photos around, tilt and scale them. Add ribbons, bubble letters (from a selection of alphabets), text (the size, colour, and font of your choice), and stickers. Long tap on any of these items to bring up a menu of functions including shadowing, bringing the item forward or back, or deleting it if you’ve changed your mind. Save the scrapbook page to your camera roll or share it via email or your social networks. You can also organize individual scrap pages into Scrapboards.
Free
Secondary
3
Easy


Title FX is a full featured text on photo app. It includes over 50 fonts and 200 fun symbols. 

You have complete control over font size, position, rotation, character/line spacing, and transparency. All adjustments use interactive slider controls. 

Select a color and apply text effects such as drop shadows and gradients to make your message standout. There are also tasteful text backgrounds. 

Add as many text objects as you want. 

You have full undo/redo possibilities, (simply touch the element you want to edit). You can export to a range of social media or to your Photo Album.
$1.99
Secondary
3
Easy

Other writing apps

PhotoCard by Bill Atkinson is a full-featured iPad app. Start by choosing one of the 220 built-in nature photographs or one of your own personal photos. Next adjust the rotation, zoom and crop, lighten or darken your photo, and let PhotoCard analyze and automatically enhance it. With a tap, flip the card over and type or dictate a personal message on the back. Add decorative stickers and stamps, and sign it with your own custom signature. Email cards can even include a recorded voice note of up to 60 seconds. 
Free
All
5
Easy

Lifecards - Postcards, enables you to use up to four of your own photos to create a postcard using a selection of templates. You can do a range of edits to your photos, including adding text & speech balloons. You can add a signature to your postcard and then email it, move it to iCloud, save it as a PDF (can then share through Dropbox) or send it to Facebook, Twitter or Flickr.
$1.99
All
5
Easy

Postale enables you to easily create custom postcards using your own photos and a personalized message, then share them instantly through email, Facebook, or Twitter. Simply select the layout and theme of your card (4 layouts and 6 themes built-in), place your photo, and type in your message. When you're ready to share it, select one of the in-built postage stamps or create a custom stamp from your photos to place on your postcard. 

Postale will imprint a unique post stamp right onto your card that shows the date and location that your card was sent from. 
More themes & stamps are available through an in-app purchase.
$1.99
All
4
Easy

Haiku Deck enables students and teachers to quickly create beautiful slide presentations. Two of the best features are that Haiku Deck intentionally limits how much text that you can put on each of your slides. Second, Haiku Deck helps you find Creative Commons licensed images for your presentations, large enough to completely fill your slide. You can also upload your own images from your iPad or import images from Instagram and Facebook.
Free
All
5
Easy

MomentDiary adds timestamps to your entries. You can record what you eat, what you watch on TV, what you are doing etc at different moments of the day. You can liven up the text with emoticons and images. You can also add voice comments.
Free
Secondary

Sentence builderhelps students to build grammatically correct sentences. While intended to support users of English, teachers or students can record their own sentences in the target language by describing images (ones included in the app or their own images). Students listen to the recording and then drag and drop individual words in place to form the sentence. Teachers can make the activity more challenging by adding additional (incorrect) words. As well as recording entire sentences, teachers can also record the sound of individual words so that students can listen to them as they click on each one.
$5.49
Junior primary/
primary
5
Easy

Upad Lite has 3 modes of use: Note taking + PDF reader & annotating + Photo editing. You can export in a range of formats.
Free
Teachers and secondary students

Notability enables users to annotate PDFs, as well as to create original notes and word process all in one. Notes can be exported from the app as PDFs to Dropbox and via email.
$0.99
Teachers and secondary students
5
Easy

PlainText is a text editor with a simple user interface. It allows you to create and organize your documents in folders and sync everything with Dropbox.com.
Free
Teachers and secondary students

With Doodle Buddy you can finger paint or use the text tool on a blank screen or built in backgrounds and drop in playful stamps and sounds. Connect with a friend on the same WiFi network to draw together and text chat. Post your doodles on your Facebook page or send to friends via email.
Free
$0.99 upgrade will hide ads
All

Evernote is a great tool for bookmarking online discoveries, saving pictures taken on the iPhone or IPad, jotting down random notes and recording comments.It would also be great for students to use at the end of a class to quickly record their homework assignments.
Use it yourself to: Record notes anywhere, anytime; take snapshots of board work, take meeting minutes; share group folders for collaborative tasks.
Free
Teachers and secondary students
5
Medium

iBrainstorm turns an iPad screen into a drawing surface.You can also add post-it notes to the screen either by yourself or from colleagues using the iBrainstorm Companion app for iPhone or iPod touch. Up to four colleagues can contribute to the iPad whiteboard via a wireless connection.
Free
All

neu.Draw is a vector tool that enable uses to quickly draw illustrations, diagrams, icons etc
Free
Secondary

neu.KidsDraw is the junior version of neu.Draw
Free
Primary

Kidblog is designed for K-12 teachers who want to provide each student with an individual blog. Students publish posts and participate in discussions within a secure classroom blogging community. Students can write for an authentic audience in a safe environment. The interface is easy to use and student-friendly with choice of themes. Posts can be kept private within the "class" or made public. This blogging platform allows teachers to monitor all publishing activity within the classroom blogging community and moderate comments and posts. Students can easily upload photos and videos directly from their iOS device with no embed codes or HTML.
Free
All
5
Easy

Dragon Dictation is an easy-to-use voice recognition application that allows you to easily speak and instantly see your text or email messages. It’s up to five times faster than typing on the keyboard. The following languages are recognised:
English, Arabic, Chinese, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Hungarian, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish.
Free
Secondary



Journals Journal, Diary and Notebook Library, gives users a choice of journal/notebook styles. You can create separate chapters and move journal entries from one chapter to another with ease. You can add pictures, video or record on Journals’ built-in audio player and directly upload any of your videos, pictures or audio recordings to your Dropbox account. Text entries can be opened in other apps for further editing or turned into PDFs. You can share your Journal entries, as well as any pictures, video, audio or drawings via Twitter, Facebook™ and email. 
$4.99
Secondary
4
Easy

NoteLedge allows you to take notes with handwriting or typed text and incorporate photos, drawings, audio and video recordings. NoteLedge is a perfect tool for making a scrapbook, composing a brief memo, keeping a daily diary, writing a travel journal, and recording brainstorming results. 
A range of themed papers lets you personalize your notes. The “Navigator"
tool lets you crop and copy selected content and paste it wherever you like within the active area. The built in web browser lets you crop and drag screenshots from websites directly to your notes. You can also copy and paste text from the browser. You can back up your notes to major cloud services including Evernote, Dropbox, Box and Google Drive, and can share your notes on Facebook and Twitter.
$5.49
Secondary
5
Easy

You can generate Cloudart from a URL or type directly into the app. Edit out individual words such as the or a (and their equivalent in French, German, Italian and Spanish). Use the intuitive sliders to customise different aspects of the cloud. Save the images as jpeg and PDF and reload saved clouds for further tweaking.
$0.99
All
3/4
Easy

Visual Poetry enables you to create word clouds that fit within an in-built cloud shape or a shape that you have drawn. Visual Poetry will work with any kind of text, not just poetry as the name implies. Users can edit text by selecting from a wide selection of font styles, font colors, and background colors. Visual Poetry makes the most common words the largest, but you can feature other words by simply typing them into your word clouds. 
$1.99
All
4
Easy

This is not an app, but one of three free downloadable templates that work within Keynote. Students can use these templates to create their own newspaper.
Templates free, $10.49 Keynote
All
4
Easy

Microsoft Office Mobile enables you to view your Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel and Microsoft PowerPoint documents from virtually anywhere.
Microsoft has also developed separate apps for Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel and Microsoft PowerPoint.
To edit files using any of these apps you need a paid subscription to Office 365.
Check out this set of free tutorials that Investech has developed to guide users through the individual apps.
Free app - can read files but requires a paid subscription to Office 365 to edit
All
5
Easy